The Dentists' Daughter
by old-crow
Summary: Dan and Emma Granger's peaceful life is rocked by a visitor claiming that there is a magical world. More shocking, the visitor wants their only daughter to become a part of that world! What would responsible parents do? Please R
1. The Visit

**The Dentists' Daughter**

Old Crow - Scribe

**Summary **– Dan and Emma Granger's peaceful life is rocked by a visitor claiming that there is a magical world. More shocking, the visitor wants their only daughter to become a part of that world! What would responsible parents do? The story is about Hermione's introduction to the world of magic as seen from her parents' PoV.

**Ships** – There are several ships in this story. However, it is primarily a story about the Grangers.

**Book compliancy** - The majority of the story takes place before Harry Potter and his friends attend school. JKR never mentioned any of this, but she should have. This is a story that I always thought should be told.

**Please note** – Other than a brief mention, there are no Weasley students in this story. As such, I am unable to plot out any cruel… (Forget that I mentioned that, I just had an idea.)

**Disclaimer** - JKR's sandbox, not mine. I'm still having fun pushing some of the piles around a bit and rearranging them.

**Wizarding etiquette** – This and my other fanfiction stories are written strictly on a hobby basis. I make no claim that it is error free, nor do I aspire to anything other than providing the occasional chuckle. If you enjoy my little stories and are willing to accept the quality level, and quirks, please read on and leave a review when you are finished. If you can't accept the occasional typo or choose to nit-pick sentence structure based on new information that your parents just paid your college to drill into you, please find a different story.

… -- …

**Introduction -** The old scribe looked down at the high plains and foothills below him. There was something about seeing the world from 8,000 feet that was clarifying. Taking a pint of his favorite beverage from his saddlebag, he sat on a smooth rock and thought about the reports that he'd written and the thousands of others that he'd seen. Many of them were similar, as the various scribes must have witnessed the same events.

After finishing his beverage, and wishing that it had been butterbeer instead, Crow hit upon something that had been niggling at him for years. Much had been reported about the Dursleys and the fact that they reacted with disgust when Harry had been 'landed on their doorstep' uninvited. Arguably, the infant represented a very real danger to their lives. In fact, in many of the reports that he'd read, the darkness had claimed them before Dudley even finished Smeltings. By most accounts, their ending had been excruciating and violent.

Yes, they treated the boy badly, but they didn't ask for him. Potter's parents never would have consented for their little boy to go to her sister. Petunia knew of the Potters' world and its perils. It was easily within her right to say 'no thanks' but Dumbledore never gave her that choice.

While brushing the dust off of his boot, Crow thought about the way that the way that another young couple reacted when they were told about the world of magic. Like the Dursleys, they were presented with a choice. All these years later, the old scribe wondered if, as responsible parents, they had made the right decisions.

The events reported here took place before those that were reported in Tom and Harry, No Thanks, or Letters and Lunches. Realizing that he had work to do, Crow repacked his belongings, got on his steel horse and began to recall the details as he rode on his way.

… -- …

**Story**

**Part 1 – The Visit**

Saturday - 5 May 1990

Emma Granger sat at her kitchen table looking out into her spacious back yard. She was very worried about her young daughter. Hermione had awoken at 3AM to find that all of the furniture in her bedroom had mysteriously been rearranged! Emma and her husband Dan had spent the better part of an hour calming their hysterical daughter down and she had finally gone to sleep at 5AM. What concerned Emma the most was that the same phenomena had previously occurred several times in the last year.

It was all that Emma could do not to think of the scary movie from the early seventies about the young girl nearly Hermione's age that had been possessed. Dan questioned if their daughter may have some abilities in telekinesis, but their local library didn't have a lot of material on the subject.

No one would say that Hermione, age ten, had enjoyed a happy childhood. Like her mother, she displayed extraordinarily intelligence. Like Emma's father, Hermione displayed an excessive admiration for authority and rules. While that was a very positive trait in a career military man, it did nothing to enhance the social standing of a little girl.

Since starting school, Hermione had no close friends. To compensate, the young girl threw herself into her schoolwork and books. Her attempts to demonstrate her exploding level of knowledge to her teachers by frantically raising her hand after each question in class only caused her classmates to further distance themselves from her. While her kinder classmates said nothing, the less tolerant ones frequently resorted to name-calling.

In the past year, the prettier girls in her class had grown ever more confident in their social standing, and the verbal attacks that they inflicted on the bucktooth girl with flyaway hair grew sharper and meaner. There were many occasions when little Hermione had come home with a tear stained face.

Hermione's only real friends were her parents. To help round out the sharp edges, Emma had insisted that her daughter at least try some of the sport activities that the primary school offered, but after an unbroken string of bad experiences, had acquiesced.

… -- …

Born Emma Young to a man who would eventually become a one star general in the British military, Emma met the love of her life in dental school. Naturally the general disliked the young student with his scruffy looks and poorer clothing immediately. The son of a deliveryman, Dan Granger barely eked his way through university and dental school with a combination of partial ROTC scholarships, loans, and part time work.

On 7 May 1977 Dan and Emma were married despite receiving no blessing from the general. They finished dental school together a few weeks later.

Borrowing every shilling that they could sign for; the two set up a small dental clinic in Crawley, some 30 miles south of London. Their life was a struggle to be sure, but they both worked hard and as the months passed, one by one, they slowly paid off their school loans.

In February of 1979, Emma announced that she was pregnant. Dan was overjoyed, but worried that Emma was obviously having a difficult pregnancy. As the months passed, they truly questioned the safety issues of attempting to have additional children in the future.

Early in the morning of the nineteenth of September, Hermione Jean was born in the midst of a power failure within the hospital.

In early August of the next year, the young family had just moved into their home on Cobbles Crescent in Crawley. Baby Hermione celebrated her first birthday in her very own bedroom.

… -- …

Little Hermione quickly became the center of the young couple's life. She could talk long before she could walk, and seemed to love when her mum or dad read her stories. Before she was four, she was naming words aloud as Emma would read to her.

Two months after she was four, Dan and his friend Mike walked into the family room only to find his little girl sitting by herself reading an illustrated children's version of _The Hobbit._ They smiled as they watched the little girl stare at the words as she sounded them out.

Mike was certain that she was mostly looking at the illustrations until the little girl inquired, "Daddy, what's a goblin?"

… -- …

Their comfortable little world shattered on the seventh of April, 1982. Dan was called up for temporary duty on the HMS Broadsword. The Broadsword and many type 22 and 42 frigates like her had been called to war - codenamed Operation Corporate. Their mission was to support and defend the aircraft carriers that were steaming their way to the Falkland Islands at the southernmost point of South America. As such, in return for his ROTC scholarships, Dan's obligation was to report for duty if called.

With 24 hours notice, Dan boarded a transport plane to meet up with his ship, which was currently in Gibraltar for three days for resupply.

Emma and their little girl Hermione gave her father a tearful hug as he left, each praying that they would soon be reunited. She would run their dental practice while her mother Jean, helped out at the front desk.

… -- …

Life aboard the Broadsword did not agree with Dan who, in all honesty, never expected to be called up for active duty. Within a week, he was away from his little family and comfortable life, serving as an assistant ship surgeon aboard a 430-foot ship that felt cramped with all of the supplies and marines that it had taken on. Primarily armed with a sea wolf anti-aircraft missile system, the ship's mission was to protect the floating airfields against air attack. The fleet of twenty ships made their way toward the Falkland Islands to accomplish what diplomacy had failed to achieve.

The 250 or so officers and crewmembers aboard Broadsword each had their respective jobs to do, were well trained and were prepared for war. Some were officers, some mechanics, some were trained to operate the anti-submarine torpedoes, helicopters, or the Sea Wolf antiaircraft system. Some made or served the meals while others kept the ship clean. Also aboard was a compliment of marines, who would eventually go ashore and fight on the islands. Their backgrounds were all different, but at the same time, they had a common goal. All in all, it was a happy ship.

… -- …

5 May 1982

Emma was shocked and frightened when she read that two Argentinean A4 jets armed with the French made M39 Exocet missiles had mortally damaged the HMS Sheffield. The reality hit her that if a 500 million pound sterling ship could be sunk by a 250 thousand pound missile, her husband could be killed by a 50 pence bullet.

A few weeks later, she was again terrified when she read that the ship that Dan was serving on had been hit by 30MM cannon fire, and another ship in their little convoy, the Antelope had been sunk.

… -- …

25 May 1982

Dan had just finished his shift and was ready to hit the sack when the call "battle stations" came. Amid the sirens and bells he could hear the flight of A4 jets approaching. Moments later, the ship was rocked as a bomb hit the side of ship.

Miraculously, it didn't explode, rather crashed through the ship and came out through the upper deck taking the front section of one of the ship's helicopters with it before falling into the ocean! One of Dan's shipmates had been feet away from the area where the bomb had entered and had lost his hand in the process. Dan worked feverously to stop the flow of bleeding and save his friend's life. He tore something in his shoulder as he dragged his shipmate away from the flaming wreckage, but got the young marine to safety.

Seconds earlier, the Broadsword's sister ship, Coventry was hit in a mighty explosion. Within minutes the call had come to abandon ship. Immediately after the attack, rescue helicopters began arriving carrying a total of 170 survivors, most of whom had been picked up from rafts or swimming in the frigid Antarctic waters. Quite a few of the sailors were wounded, Dan and the rest of the medical crew worked at a frantic pace, saving as many lives as they could. Many were injected with morphine while their injuries were treated. Most would heal, but some would never be the same.

After they were done, Dan and the others were permitted to examine the damage to the ship. There was a huge hole in the side of the unarmored frigate! Fortunately, it was above the waterline.

That evening, Dan visited his marine friend who had lost his hand and a good part of his arm. He opened his eyes and looked at the man who had saved his life and tried to whisper something through his parched lips. Dan held a paper cup filled with a tot of rum in it. With the chief doctor's approval, Dan moistened the Marine's lips with a few drops of rum from his finger. The young marine's face relaxed into a smile and he fell asleep again.

… -- …

Emma's world was shattered when she read that the Broadsword had been hit by a bomb and the ship next to it had sunk. It hadn't initially been reported that the bomb hadn't exploded. She had no way of knowing if her husband was alive, wounded, missing or worse. She spent yet another sleepless night desperately holding their little girl, praying for Dan's safety.

The next day at noon, the ministry of defense contacted her and all of the members of the crew, letting her know that in her husband's case, he was okay.

Four months later, Dan was released from active duty, peace having been restored. His time in the military hadn't been long, but due to the action that he and the rest of his shipmates had seen, was changed man. He had learned that even though he was afraid, he could stare death in the face and still do his job.

… -- …

June 1990

Dan had spent the better part of the last month looking up telekinesis on various websites. By the time he sorted through the redundancy, the "evidence" usually came down to two "experiments" – holding a pinwheel and making the blades spin without blowing on it and rotating a straw placed on the top of a pop bottle.

The counter claims were logical enough. In the case of the pinwheel, the heat from the person's hands could have been sufficient to make the wheel slowly spin, as could air currents from within a room.

From what he read, nothing that could be replicated came anywhere near approaching moving dressers, chair and nightstands. In his discussions with Emma, Dan never mentioned the exorcism movie that they'd seen a few fears back or the film about the young girl in the prom dress. He simply didn't want to frighten Emma or his little girl.

He kept searching the Internet for reasonable explanations for psychic phenomena, but failed to find satisfactory answers.

… -- …

22 September 1990

On Saturday, a minute or so after nine in the morning, Emma went to the door to see who was knocking. Opening the door, she saw a prim woman standing there, wearing a somewhat out of date, conservative black dress. She wore rimless rectangle spectacles with slate grey earpieces and her hair was wrapped into the tightest bun that Emma had seen in years. Smiling, she said to the woman, "Good morning. May I help you?"

"Good morning Dr. Granger. My name is Professor Minerva McGonagall from the Hogwarts school. I came to see you about offering your daughter, Hermione a place in our school for the next term. May I come in?"

"Certainly," replied Emma, trying to think if she'd heard of the school before. She quickly decided that she hadn't. "Hermione and my husband Dan are out back. Should I get them?"

"They'll be back in a moment," replied McGonagall handing Emma a thick envelope. "Hogwarts is the best school of its kind in Britain. We believe that your daughter would thrive there and have an outstanding experience."

Emma had heard a similar pitch a week before from Davison secondary school. A part of her wanted to keep Hermione at home, since she made friends so infrequently, yet another part of her knew that a boarding school experience would most likely provide her the social opportunities that she would need to become a well rounded young woman.

"How many students are there?" asked Emma who hadn't yet glanced at the information that McGonagall had handed her.

"In total there are 322 young men and women enrolled this year. Typically there are forty to fifty new students each year. We rarely accept transfer students and the vast majority of the students who start at Hogwarts finish."

"What fields of study would Hermione be prepared for? She has indicated an interest in going onto Kings College to study medicine."

"Perhaps you should look at the letter, Hermione," said Minerva taking an envelope from her pocket and handing it to the young girl.

Hermione stretched out her hand to take the yellowish envelope, addressed in emerald green to Miss. H. Granger, 18 Cobbles Crescent, Crawley. She carefully examined the red seal on the back of the envelope, glanced at the steely-eyed professor for a moment and opened the envelope. She pulled out the letter and read:

_HOGWARTS SCHOOL of WITCHCRAFT and WIZARDRY_

_Headmaster: ALBUS DUMBLEDORE_

_(Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorcerer, Chief. Warlock, Supreme_

_Mugwump, International Confederation of Wizards)_

_Dear Miss Granger,_

_We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts_

_School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all_

_necessary books and equipment._

_Term begins on 1 September. We await your owl by no later than 31 July._

_Yours sincerely,_

_Minerva McGonagall,_

_Deputy Headmistress_

In the fifteen seconds that it took Hermione to read the envelope, her life suddenly made sense. She reread the envelope, looked at Minerva and nodded. All of the odd things that she had done, either consciously or unconsciously, suddenly fell into place. She looked at the Professor and said, "There are more like me?"

McGonagall replied, "There are thousands who share your abilities in Britain alone. Doctor and Doctor Granger, perhaps you could take a look at your daughter's offer letter, then we can discuss the school; in more detail."

Emma's nice orderly world came crashing down as she looked at the letterhead. _Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry Established 975AD_. She put the letter down without reading the rest.

"What kind of joke is this? Who _are_ you?"

"I assure you Dr. Granger, this is no joke. Your daughter has magical abilities."

Initially insulted at the claim, Emma nearly shouted, "Magical abilities! … Are you trying to tell us that our daughter is a, a…"

In as perfectly calm voice, McGonagall finished Emma's unspoken sentence for her. "A witch? Yes. There's no doubt about it. If you would allow me two minutes, I'll demonstrate the existence of magic and then answer any questions that you might have. May I?"

Dan held the palm of his hand out and said, "Please?"

Minerva took out her wand and carefully levitated the coffee table in front of them. When the table was about at eye level, she gave her wand a tiny flick and the table slowly spun around anti-clock ways. After it had made two revolutions, McGonagall gave her wand another flick and carefully caused the table to lower itself back down to the floor without having spilled the teacups!

"May I continue?"

Dan and Emma sat, silenced by the demonstration that they were seeing and just nodded.

Minerva pointed to the London Times that was on the table and said, "Watch closely." She pointed her wand at the paper and a moment later a four-foot poplar tree was standing in their living room, apparently growing on top of the end table!

Dan put his arm out to touch the tree, looked at McGonagall and asked, "May I?"

She nodded, "Of course."

He reached over, felt one of the branches, snapped it off and handed it to Emma who felt it in her hand before handing it back to Dan.

Minerva said, "If you would, Dr. Granger, please set the branch back on the table."

Awestruck, he did as she asked. The old woman gave her wand a tint flick, said, "Repairo," and the branch reattached itself. Emma stood up to examine the branch that she had held in her hand a moment before saw that it was perfectly attached to the little tree and sat down again. A moment later, McGonagall said a few other words, flicked the wand, and the tree disappeared, leaving the London Times.

"Amazing," said Dan.

"Magic," replied McGonagall. "If you would please, step out into the back garden with me."

Whether to simply amuse the old crone or to see what she would do next, they all followed her out to the back of their home. The old woman took out a quill and asked, "Have you ever been to Brighton?"

Emma glanced at her watch and replied, "Of course. Why do you ask?"

McGonagall replied, "Please touch this quill for a moment." They all complied; not having an idea what the old woman was going to do next. McGonagall told Hermione, "Please say your full name, Miss Granger."

Hermione looked at her mum for a moment and in a weak voice replied, "Hermione Jean Granger."

A moment later, the four of them found themselves standing inside one of the shade tents along Brighton beach. "Please come with me," said the old woman. Half terrified, half enchanted, they complied with her request.

They walked along the beach for a minute. Hermione and Emma bent down to collect several shells and dipped their feet into the cool water. A few minutes later she led them back to the changing tent, had them touch another quill and activated it by having Hermione say "Pumpkin." A moment later they were standing in their back garden!

"Amazing. Are you saying that with some classes in witchery our daughter will be able to do things like that?" asked Dan who was stumbling over the words. Emma gave him "the look," and he said, "Professor, would you excuse us for a moment?"

They stepped back into their kitchen for a moment. Emma had a very panicked look on her face. "What just happened?" she demanded. "One minute we were sitting here, the next we were at the ocean, the next we're back at our home." She squeezed the sand and shell that she had scooped up. The flakes and bits of grit felt real in her hand. She glanced at her watch again. It was six minutes later than when she had looked at it the first time. Brighton beach was almost a hundred miles south of their home in Crawley. None of this made sense.

Dan thought for a moment. If what this woman had shown them was real, and not some sick stunt, it was as if men from outer space had landed in their back garden and offered their daughter a ticket to explore the galaxy with them! He enjoyed his business and loved Em, but it was as if the old woman was offering to show Hermione a completely different world from the one that they lived in.

… -- …

Out in the back, the clarity of her explanation and the demonstration had a profoundly calming effect on the eleven-year-old girl. Everything made sense. _The Professor could levitate furniture too, except she could do it when she wanted to and had a… a magic wand to help her._ _Of course. There must be schools to teach these things, and she was offering me a place to go there with other kids who were… just like me._ A smile crept onto her face.

… -- …

Emma noticed the look on Hermione's face, glanced at her best friend, who nodded and said, "Let's go back in and hear the woman out."

They walked back into the house. McGonagall was sitting on the chair by the table again.

Emma spoke first saying, "We obviously have a number of questions for you, Professor."

McGonagall smiled and replied, "Right. Ask away, then." Her Scottish burr seemed to fit her well.

Emma started asking, "How do you know that our daughter can learn those things?"

With no more surprise than if she had been asked the time of day, McGonagall replied, "Her name was added to the list of magical beings when she was born. She has performed accidental magic on several occasions." She looked at the bushy haired young girl, who nodded.

Emma was about to question, _Why now_, but became distracted by Dan's question.

Dan asked, "What makes a person magical?"

Over the years, Minerva had heard similar questions dozens of times. With perfect confidence, she replied, "Their ability to manipulate energy and matter through thought processes. It's a gift that some people are born with. It typically runs in families, but infrequently manifests itself in a person whose parents have no such abilities."

Dan asked, "Where is this school?"

"Hogwarts castle is located in the Scottish highlands. Inverness is the closest large city." She knew that it would do no good to mention Hogsmeade.

Not certain what to expect, Emma asked, "Do we have a choice in the matter?"

Somewhat surprised by the question, Minerva replied, "_Of course_ you do. Receiving a magical education is _entirely_ an eligible individual's decision." She didn't go into the aspect of what would happen if their daughter chose not to attend. The ministry took care of obliviations of muggleborns who refused their invitations shortly after their twelfth birthday and subsequent invitation to a lesser school of magic.

Dan inquired, "What would she learn?"

"She would learn techniques and skills to control her magical energy. The first year curriculum consists of learning the basics of charms, potions, the history of magic, defense against the dark arts and the topic that I teach, transfiguration. Charms includes levitation such as I did with your table. Potions class is somewhat similar to chemistry except with the inclusion of magical elements. The history of magic provides a historical perspective on the magical culture within Britain and the continent."

Dan nodded, not really understanding what the woman was saying.

"Defense is a practical applications class to ensure that your child learns the skills to remain safe within the magical world." Seeing their acceptance, she continued saying "Transfiguration is the science of turning one object into another through the application of mental energy as when I turned your _London Times_ into a small tree. In the later years the upperclassmen have additional electives to match their interests and desired career objectives."

Emma asked, "What about the rest of her education?"

"There is advanced study based on her chosen career field, healing by example is another three years of study and internship."

"What career opportunities are there?"

"Your daughter's magical options are as wide and varied as in the nonmagical world – research, healing, government, law enforcement, education or business. Ultimately it depends on her individual drive, ambition level and willingness to study."

The Professor had spoken the magic words for Hermione – _willingness to study_. She looked at McGonagall and said earnestly, "I would work _very_ hard, Professor."

Minerva looked at the determination that was steeled on the young girl's face, gave a rare smile and said, "I believe you, Miss Granger."

Dan asked, "What are the costs?"

Minerva said, "All of the information is in the package that I gave you. Tuition, room and board is approximately six thousand pounds for the year. A Hogwarts education runs seven years. Pricing has been very stable for the last fifty years. Term runs September first until the last full week in June. The Christmas holiday break is two weeks and the Easter break is one week. The train will take your daughter from Kings Cross station to Hogsmeade station."

Somewhat apprehensively, Emma asked, "How long do we have to decide?"

"You have until end of term, the 26th of June of next year to reply to your invitation. Fees for the first year are due by the end of July. If you elect to enroll, your daughter will receive access to Diagon Alley in London where she may purchase her school supplies, uniforms, a wand and reading materials. They normally are purchased during the summer holiday." Sensing her eagerness, McGonagall added, "In your daughter's case, she may wish to arrange a visit the book store and get a head start on her reading."

Hermione looked at her with obvious excitement on her face, but didn't say anything. Sensing that they would need some time to consider her offer and review the materials, McGonagall said, "I'll return in two weeks to answer any other questions that you may have. Thank you for your time Drs. Granger. It was good to meet you Miss Granger. Please look over the materials carefully. They should help you in your decision process."

They said their goodbyes and watched in rapt fascination as the conservatively dressed woman stepped out into their back garden and disappeared a moment later.

While they weren't regular drinkers, and it wasn't yet noon, Dan poured them both a tott of Appleton rum.

… -- …

The old witch put the report down after reading it. While she was aware of the conflict that had been mentioned in the most basic of terms, the story of bravery under fire was interesting to her.

She looked at the framed photo that the old scribe had left on her desk. She commented, "You should display this somewhere everyone could see it. The old scribe nodded and thought, 'I did. I have one hanging in the crow's nest.'

The prim witch set the photo next to the other artifacts and inquired, "I assume that you have more on this matter to report. Is that correct?"

McGonagall nodded and stood as the old scribe got up to ride off. He had written Mattd12027. There were also the words Eternal Right.

… -- …


	2. Some Hard Decisions

… -- …

**Part 2 – Some Hard Decisions**

Two days later, things were still unsettled at the normally orderly Granger household. The day following McGonagall's visit, they had driven down to Brighton and found the area that she had taken them to. Emma was still trying to reconcile how they had been standing in their own back garden at 9:15AM, traveled over a hundred miles to Brighton, then spent four minutes walking along the beach and been back at their own back garden, all within the span of six minutes.

Whereas Dan was somewhat willing to accept the explanation of "its magic," Emma wanted to analyze how it was possible and if possible understand the technique that the old woman had used to get them there and back in such a short time.

Emma really had two questions – did her daughter possess the ability to learn and perform magic like the professor had demonstrated and secondly, was it in their daughter's best interest to forgo the other educational options and pursue this field of study?

Regardless of how convincing McGonagall's demonstration had been as to the existence of magic, and her insistence that their daughter had undeveloped magical abilities, they had yet to reach to decision to send their daughter to the school in accordance to her latest wishes, or pursue the original plan of sending her to Davison then eventually attempt to gain admittance to King's collage to study medicine on a legacy basis.

They examined the letter that the old woman had delivered to them again. It was written on an obviously expensive parchment paper. It was embossed with the same circular seal that had been on Hermione's invitation.

_Dear Doctor and Doctor Granger,_

_You daughter Hermione has been offered admission at Hogwarts school beginning with the 1991-1992 school year. Hogwarts is a millennia old school that specializes in offering secondary education for young men and women of exceptional ability._

_What sets Hogwarts apart from all of the other schools that you may be considering for you child is that it offers curriculum designed to develop the ability to practice magic that your daughter has the ability to perform._

_Hogwarts is the premier school of magical education in Britain, if not the world. In the seven years that your child spends here, she will become fully competent in the magical arts. Beginning students have classes in history of magic, potions, charms, herbology, defense, charms and transfiguration. Elective courses begin in the third year including fields of study in arithmancy, runes, care of magical creatures, and divination. Seventh year electives include healing, estate management, and household charms._

_Tuition, room and board remains at 1,060 galleons this year. At current exchange rates that equates to about 5,300 pounds sterling. Additionally, your child will require a wand, uniforms, books, consumable school supplies such as ink, quills, parchment, and age appropriate potions ingredients. Your child is allowed to bring a familiar with them such as an owl, cat or toad. Fees are expected to have been paid by the end of July for the following school year._

_The school year begins on the first of September and concludes the Friday of the last full week in June. Students are expected to arrive and return via the Hogwarts express which departs from platform 9 ¾ at the Kings Cross station in London. Your child can return home for the Christmas and Easter holidays when school is out for two weeks and one week respectively._

_Please consider this invitation carefully and direct any questions that you might have to Professor McGonagall who is responsible for new student-parent liaisons. For your convenience, an owl will be made available for your use a week from today._

_Sincerely,_

_Albus Dumbledore_

_Headmaster_

… -- …

Wednesday evening arrived. In the last few days, Hermione seemed to be at peace, as if the great mystery of her life had been solved. She hadn't mentioned much about the visit or the letters that they'd both received. She didn't suspect that her parents might be frantic with worry, and assumed that their silence on the matter indicated the same high level of acceptance that she had acquired.

She was wrong.

Her parents' old university friends, Mike and Diane Turnbull were stopping over before they and her parents went out for dinner. By unspoken agreement, the Grangers had decided not to tell anyone else of the old woman's visit.

At seven the doorbell rang and Hermione answered the door.

"Hi Kiddo," greeted Diane, when she saw Hermione. She gave her Goddaughter a hug. "How's school?"

"Great," replied Hermione in a sincere voice. She had stopped worrying about her lack of acceptance from her current school peers and was beginning to envision herself in her new life at her new school.

Diane was surprised at the change. As a practicing psychologist, she thought that he had a good understanding of Hermione's unhappy school situation, and didn't see it as one that would change overnight.

Diane inquired about Hermione after the four adults left for the restaurant.

"She's fine," replied Emma, clearly not wanting to elaborate about anything.

As long as they stayed on neutral subjects, everything seemed fine, but their longtime friends were clearly hiding some issue about their lives. As they were driving Dan and Emma back to their home, Mike asked, "Did you hear back from the Davison school?"

"No, yes," replied, Dan and Emma respectively.

Mike laughed and suggested, "When you two decide, we can talk about it in two weeks. You'll pick us up at seven, right?"

Dan and Emma both nodded as they scurried into their home after a hurried set of good nights.

As they drove off, Mike mused, "I wonder what's up with them?"

Diane replied, "I'm not sure, but I think it has something to do with Hermione."

… -- …

While they were having lunch at their practice the next day, Emma suggested, "We should look them up and see if there is a listing on the Internet. What's their e-mail?"

Dan replied, "Just a minute, I'll plug in the modem." As they were eating their sandwiches, Dan announced, "Okay, I'm connected. I'll look for them on AltaVista. H O G W A R T S, right?"

"Right."

"Nothing."

"Try Castle, Inverness."

"Inverness, Brodie, Cawdor, Stuart and Urqhart."

Emma replied, "We've stayed at Stuart and did a day tour of Inverness and Urqhart."

Dan read the text on the VGA monitor and announced, "It says that Brodie castle is owned by the national trust of Scotland and they give day tours."

Emma looked over his shoulder and replied, "That's not a likely method to hide a magic school. How about Cawdor?"

Dan clicked on a few screens, waiting a half minute or so between each one for the text to display, then replied, "Maybe, except it's too new. The listing says it was built in the 1400s. Didn't she say that their school was a thousand years old?"

Emma nodded and replied, "It mentioned that in the letter that we received."

"Maybe they figured out a way to physically hide it."

"That makes sense. Maybe they can provide some sort of references, or have us meet a witch/wizard's family and see what their life looks like."

… -- …

When they got home that evening, they were unsurprised to see an owl perched on the back of one of the patio chairs in their back yard. There was a note attached to the owl's leg, held by what looked like a leather shoelace. Dan approached the bird and carefully untied the note and then opened it.

_Dear Doctor Granger,_

_Please write your questions on the back of this parchment, and place it back in the envelope. The owl will deliver it back to me. Professor McGonagall or I will have answers for all of your questions when she returns a week from Saturday at nine in the morning._

_Sincerely,_

_Albus Dumbledore_

Dan and Emma carefully wrote their questions and placed the parchment back in the envelope. Dan then carefully tied the leather lace around the owl's leg, which seemed to give him a disapproving look at the length of time that the man was taking. When Dan had finished, the owl took to the air and flew out of sight a half minute later.

Later that evening, they both went in and kissed their daughter goodnight. The recent events didn't change their love for her a bit.

As they closed the door and went back to the family room, the idea of another small glass of Jamaican rum seemed like a good one.

… -- …

That Friday afternoon, Dumbledore was holding his weekly staff meeting. After the usual business regarding class activities and detentions had been discussed, the old professor inquired, "How did your perspective student home visit go last week, Minerva?"

McGonagall replied, "I visited a muggleborn witch who just turned eleven, Hermione Granger. Her parents are medical professionals of some type. Hermione has an obvious intelligence. I would love to have her as a Gryffindor, Filius, but she has quite the thirst for knowledge."

The others nodded in appreciation of her assessment. They all desired that more exceptional students would attend. They had lost several promising applicants in the last year, either to Beaubatons or muggleborns that elected to remain in the non-magical world.

Dumbledore mentioned, "Her parents have asked to check our references or meet another witch or wizard."

McGonagall occasionally had these types of requests. She inquired, "Who would we send?"

Dumbledore suggested, "Perhaps Professor Snape would do. He's nearer their age."

Sprout shook her head and observed, "Snape would scare them off." Fortunately, their colleague was attending to some of his potions and wasn't in the room to argue the point.

Dumbledore countered, "What about Sybil?"

Minerva gave the old headmaster "the look" and replied, "Albus… They'd take one look at her and run for the hills."

Seeing McGonagall's point, he gave a sigh of resignation and said, "I suppose that eliminates Hagrid or Filius."

Flitwick suggested, "I think Poppy would be the best choice. Their profession must be fairly close to hers."

They all agreed and Dumbledore announced, "I'll send them an owl letting them know that the two of you will be by a week from Saturday at 9AM."

… -- …

Meanwhile, Hermione pored over the book and supply list as if her very life depended on her memorizing it.

_HOGWARTS SCHOOL of WITCHCRAFT and WIZARDRY UNIFORM_

_First-year students will require:_

_1. Three sets of plain work robes (black)_

_2. One plain pointed hat (black) for day wear_

_3. One pair of protective gloves (dragon hide or similar)_

_4. One winter cloak (black, silver fastenings)_

_Please note that all pupils' clothes should carry name tags_

_COURSE BOOKS_

_All students should have a copy of each of the following:_

_The Standard Book of Spells (Grade 1) by Miranda Goshawk_

_A History of Magic by Bathilda Bagshot_

_Magical Theory by Adalbert Waffling_

_A Beginners' Guide to Transfiguration by Emeric Switch_

_One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi by Phyllida Spore_

_Magical Drafts and Potions by Arsenius Jigger_

_Beginners Guide to Astronomy by Singa Aquarius_

_Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them by Newt Scamander_

_The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self-Protection by Quentin Trimble_

_OTHER EQUIPMENT_

_wand_

_cauldron (pewter, standard size 2) set_

_glass or crystal phials_

_telescope_

_set of brass scales_

_first year potions ingredients kit_

_Students may also bring an owl OR a cat OR a toad_

_PARENTS ARE REMINDED THAT FIRST YEARS ARE NOT ALLOWED THEIR OWN BROOMSTICKS_

_Personal items are available for purchase in the school commissary._

The Professor that visited assured Hermione that she would be able to purchase her class books and "perhaps a few others" early. The fledgling witch promised herself that she would read each of the books thoroughly over the summer so that she wouldn't disappoint anyone.

She refolded the envelope and examined the purple seal. Part had broken off, but she could see some type of lion and a broken snake surrounding the letter H. The writing was in emerald green and there was no stamp, which made sense to the girl, as it had been hand delivered.

… -- …

The Friday before Professor McGonagall was scheduled to return, Cindy Olslager and her group of fifth grade girls decided that it was "pick on the Granger dweeb day."

One of Cindy's cohorts knocked the stack of books and papers that the bushy haired little girl was carrying in her arms. Papers went flying as the books crashed to the floor. In an innocent voice, she asked, "What's a matter, Granger? Too smart to watch where you're going?"

Previously Hermione would have made some awkward attempt to lash back, or would have turned away in tears.

This time, she simply smiled at Cindy and replied, "I suppose you're right. My mistake." The opinion of the twittering blonde who had developed prematurely meant nothing to her anymore. Somehow Hermione knew that she had a much more important path to follow.

It was the last time that Cindy bothered Hermione. It was no fun putting someone down if you received no reaction from her.

… -- …

As Hermione was taking the school bus home and the Grangers' dental hygienist finished up with the last patient of the day, Emma pulled Dan into their office and closed the door.

Pouring her husband a cup of tea, she mentioned, "I got another call from the admissions administrator at Davison today. They were expecting a decision and a deposit a week ago. I don't think we can hold her place much longer."

Dan asked, "What about St. Paul or Wycombe Abbey? They sent an invitation."

Emma disagreed, "We're _no_t sending Hermione to an all girls school. There are other A list schools to apply to. If we have to begin searching all over again, we will. Did you finish your list of questions for Professor McGonagall?"

Dan put down his tea, thought for a moment and replied, "I have a zillion questions for her, but I suppose it boils down to three things - How do they know that she has the ability to do magic, what sort of future would that give her, and how is she supposed to learn science, algebra, calculus, languages and everything else that she needs in order to get into Uni?"

Emma suggested, "What if we enrolled her at Davison to hold her place and had her try Hogwarts for a semester? I know it's a lot of money, but it leaves her an option."

Dan admitted, "It's an idea. What else?"

"It wouldn't be that dear to hire a tutor for the summer to teach her algebra, or trig. I assume we could do the same with chemistry, biology and physics. I don't think we need to worry about literature if we send her a book allowance. We could make it work."

Dan remained silent watching his brilliant best friend work through whatever she was considering. A minute later she nodded and confirmed, "She could get by taking summer tutoring classes if we planned carefully. As to careers, we should talk about that tomorrow. I agree with your question about demonstrating how they know that she could perform magic."

Dan pondered, just imaging the advances that they must have, being able to combine magic with all the technology – instant communication, medical advances, environmental cleanup. The possibilities seemed unlimited. Finally he said, "It seems to open a lot of doors for her, and if we work at it over the summers with her, she can give it a try without closing the door on too many other opportunities."

Emma nodded and replied, "Let's see what tomorrow brings. I know Hermione's excited about the idea, but we'll hear them out and look at it objectively. We can talk it over after they leave and make the best decision."

… -- …

Nine o'clock came, and seconds later there was a knock on the door. Dan wasn't surprised that Emma and Hermione were in a literal foot race to try to get to the door first. Youth and agility won out over determination and Hermione's hand reached the knob first.

She threw the door open, looked up to see Professor McGonagall in her dark green velvet robes, accompanied by a nurse in a 1940s style nurses uniform. Hermione greeted the two witches in a friendly manner, "Good morning, Professor McGonagall, Ma'am." My name is Hermione Granger. This is my mother, Dr. Emma Granger. Please come in."

Emma stood behind her daughter, and suppressed a smile; both at the nurse's uniform, but also at her daughter's obvious attempt at making a favorable impression. She smiled at the two women and said, "Thank you for coming again, Professor McGonagall. She held her hand out to the nurse and said, "Emma Granger. I'm pleased to meet you."

Minerva announced, "Dr. Granger, this is Master Healer, Poppy Pomfrey." She was never one to skip titles in introductions.

Poppy gave her longtime friend a wry smile and held out her hand and announced, "Poppy."

"Emma. This is my husband, Dan." The two women met each other's eyes for a few seconds, made a connection as professionals in kind, and smiled at each other.

Minerva looked around, and there was an awkward moment, as they hadn't really been invited to sit or anything. Hermione solved it by asking, "Mum, if it's alright, I wanted to ask Professor McGonagall about a few books?"

Emma was lost in her thought for a moment, nodded and replied, "We'll be out back with Poppy. Dan, would you get a tray of beverages?"

Emma directed Poppy outside to sit at the umbrella table in the back garden to enjoy the exceptionally nice autumn weather. Emma asked, "What area of medicine do you practice in?"

Poppy replied, "I worked at St. Mungos in London during the blitz, primarily in spell damage, but frequently we would get patients who had been bombing victims. In 1943, I went back to Hogwarts as head healer. You would call it more of a generalist. We treat cuts, scrapes, burns, regrow broken bones, handle teenage girl issues, animal bites – the usual things for a school. How about yourselves?"

Emma was much more comfortable talking with another medical professional than the stern old woman who just looked like she was waiting to catch someone misbehaving. She replied, "Dan and I run a dentistry clinic. We provide care in preventative dentistry, cosmetic repair, oral surgery and orthodontics. Dan does more of the day-to-day activities. I handle the replacements, bridges, crowns and the like. You mentioned regrowing broken bones. How does that work?"

Poppy was also enjoying the visit with the younger woman. She replied, "Depending on the location and severity of the break, I either set the fracture and mend the break or remove it and use a Skele-Gro potion. If it is a clean break, it's usually not more than a five minute procedure to mend. If there are multiple breaks, or associated muscle damage, I usually try to replace the bone, though that is an overnight process."

Emma asked, "You don't insert a nail or use a cast?" Although she didn't do those procedures herself, she was familiar with the technique.

Thinking of a carpenter nail, Poppy replied, "Heavens no. In the simpler cases, the bone is as good as new in a minute or two. I keep the patient in bed for five or ten minutes to calm them down; that's all."

Amazed at the ease of the procedure, Emma asked, "What equipment do you normally use?"

Poppy replied, "Mostly my wand to perform diagnostic and imaging charms. Once I decide on a treatment, I use the appropriate healing charm or portions."

… -- …

Ten minutes later, Dan brought out a tea serving for four, several cokes, classes and some biscuits. He opened the door and winced slightly as he carried them out.

Poppy watched carefully as Dan set the tray down. She asked, "How long have you had a rotator cuff tear in your left arm?"

Dan replied, "About eight years. I tore it in the navy, dragging a wounded shipmate out of harm's way."

Poppy nodded and replied, "You must have been on one of the ships that went to make things right at St. George."

Dan nodded.

Poppy continued, "My husband was in the Royal Navy. He served on the Pandora, in the submarine service."

Emma considered her words for a moment and asked, "I… What would a… wizard do on a submarine?"

Poppy thought fondly of her late husband and Arthur Weasley and replied, "Probably open the main hatch at in inopportune time. My Stan was as nonmagical as they come, but I loved him so. We met in 1939 and were married a few months later. He was killed on April 1942 in Gibraltar. He served on the submarine Pandora." She had a faraway look for a moment, smiled and added, "He was a good man." She twisted her finger where she'd previously worn a wedding ring for a moment and asked, "How much range of motion do you have laterally and above your head?"

Dan demonstrated. Even with therapy and exercise, he'd lost 45 degrees of lateral movement and 30 degrees above his head.

Poppy offered, "I can look at that if you want."

Dan gave Emma a quick look, saw a nod and replied, "Please."

They had a secluded back garden and no one else was out. Poppy said, "If you would just remove your shirt for a moment. She stood behind him and mentioned, "This won't hurt a bit."

Dan smiled, having spoken those words thousands of times before tightening patients' braces.

Emma watched in rapt fascination as 3D images of the various muscle groups appeared behind his back. She located the tear and placed her wand directly over the affected area. The tip glowed blue for a moment as she slowly worked the wand back and forth along his collarbone. Twenty seconds later, the glow stopped and she cast an imaging charm again. She suggested, "Let it finish healing for a minute and you can put your shirt back on."

… -- …

Meanwhile, Hermione was grilling Professor McGonagall on each and every subject. "Which class is _Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them_ from?"

Minerva smiled. The young girl had listened to her describe the different courses the other day and concluded that the text that she mentioned didn't fit. McGonagall replied, "It is a book of general knowledge regarding the magical world covering dragons, hinkypunks, unicorns and the like. It is loosely tied to the first year history of magic course."

Hermione persevered, and asked, "Can you recommend any other books for background reading or theory?"

Minerva smiled, having asked a similar question to the Liberian many years before when she herself was a new first year. She replied, "Several come to mind. _Hogwarts: a history_ is a great text on the origins of the school and all of the significant events. _Rise and Fall of the Dark Arts _is also good background reading. A basic Latin book would serve you well as most of the spells that we teach are of Latin origin. Finally, you will find that reading _1001 Potion Ingredients and Their Uses_ will take you a long way in understanding how potions actually work."

Hermione nodded and took neatly written notes as she went. Minerva added, "Should you want an extra book on transfiguration, _Changing Things – a Guide_ will help you. Though you won't be able to use them until you're older, _101 Household Charms_ is an interesting book to look through." She glanced at the clock and suggested, "That's enough for now. Let's go find you parents."

… -- …

They walked out to see Emma laughing and Dan tucking his shirt in. Minerva gave Poppy an odd look. Poppy gave a smile and explained, "Professional courtesy."

Minerva shook her head at her good-natured friend and replied, "Right. So what questions can we answer?"

Emma asked, "So with proper studying and diligence, Hermione could learn to do that?"

Poppy was watching Dan do windmills with both arms with equal ease. She looked back and replied, "Not all wizards and witches elect to learn healing, but if Hermione has the interest and does well in her classes, then yes, she could."

Dan added, "First of all, thank you very much. My arm hasn't felt that good in years. I guess my final question is how can you be certain that Hermione will be able to learn and perform magic?"

Minerva looked at Poppy, who nodded. The kindly healer held out her wand, grip toward Dan and directed, "Hold this for a moment."

Dan did as she asked and felt only the tiniest tingle.

She instructed, "Picture the tip of the wand glowing like a flashlight, point it at the garage and say, Lumos."

Dan did as she asked, held the wand as respectfully as he would a loaded gun, pointed it at the garage and said, "Lumos."

Nothing happened.

Poppy coached, "Try again, please."

Nothing happened.

Poppy held her hand out and Dan handed her back her wand. Deep down, he was disappointed that it hadn't lit up or at least caused a small fire.

Poppy said, "With you permission, I'd like Hermione to try the same thing."

Emma glanced at Dan, who nodded, and Pomfrey handed the wand to his daughter.

A smile came to the young girl as she held the wand. She couldn't describe it, but it felt like a warmth was spreading from the pit of her stomach to the tip of her arm. Poppy nodded and in a confident voice, Hermione called out, "Lumos."

Like a small flashlight with used batteries, the wand tip glowed and threw off a small beam of light. The wand wasn't a perfect fit, but Dan and Emma could clearly see the beam. In fact, it was a great first effort.

Like the proud parents of a novice trumpet player, the result was sweet music to their ears. They had seen a practical use for magic and seen that their daughter possessed the ability to perform it. Their beloved Hermione could do magic!

Dan glanced at Emma who asked Hermione, "Please give Healer Pomfrey her wand back." She looked at the two Hogwarts witches and announced, "If the two of you would excuse us for a few minutes, we'll be right back."

… -- …

Crow waited patiently while McGonagall read his report. As expected she lit into him. "Mr. Crow, we discussed the no cliffhanger rule in your last set of reports about Ms. Bones. You evaded expulsion from the storytellers guild by giving your oath."

'True,' thought the old scribe, 'but it only applied to life or death situations.' He was much more interested in the latest report on sisterhood from the little known storyteller, Rohata. He even memorized the report number, 4314709. Crow wished that the old crone sitting in front of him could behave more like the report that he read.

However, it was a sunny afternoon, and the road was calling him.


	3. Are You a Witch or Not?

… -- …

**Part 3 - Are You a Witch or Not?**

Inside the kitchen, the three Grangers sat at their kitchen table. Emma glanced at Dan, who asked, "Hermione, is this what you really want?"

The young witch looked at her mum and dad and replied, "I could learn with other kids who are _just like me_. Yes, it's _exactly_ what I want."

Emma held out her arms and Hermione drew her parents into a three-way hug. She whispered, "We love you, dear."

… -- …

Poppy could tell by the smile on the young girl's face that her parents had decided to allow her to attend. The Master Healer had never really considered the lifestyle that muggleborns had to give up to go to Hogwarts. A quick look around their lovely home revealed two nice cars, a telephone, electrical appliances, television, a walkman and a computer. Poppy could see that that much had changed since the pain of Stan's death drove her away from everyday London and back into the timelessness of the castle.

She decided that she'd had more fun this morning than in years, and volunteered to come again in a week to bring Hermione and her parents to Diagon Alley. Before she and McGonagall left, she confirmed the arrangements, "I'll come back next Saturday morning. You can drive us to Charing Cross Road and I'll lead the way from there."

They all waved their goodbyes and the two witches disappeared a moment later.

… -- …

That evening, after things had settled down a bit, Dan looked at the bundled document that McGonagall had given him after they announced their decision to enroll Hermione at Hogwarts. On the top was the letterhead, Ministry of Magic. The bottom was embossed with a raised seal.

_International Statute of Secrecy of 1692 as amended in 1921_

Dan waded through the document for at least twenty minutes, nodding off at least once in the process until he found a relevant section. He called Emma over and they read it together.

_Section XLVIII – Relatives of muggleborn wizards or witches_

_Parents of muggleborn wizards or witches are prohibited from disclosing the existence of, or the details of the magical world to muggles outside of their immediate family._

_I) Immediate family is considered to be the wizard or witch's spouse, betrothed, father, mother, brother, sister, son or daughter._

_II) Details include books, parchments, magical imbued objects, the existence of Diagon Alley, or stores within, St. Mungos, the Ministry of Magic, Hogwarts, or similar school._

_III) Muggleborn wizards and witches are specifically prohibited from performing magic or displaying magical items within the sight of, or hearing range of muggles not specifically excluded in subsection I above._

_IV) Should an accidental disclosure occur, the witch or wizard is to notify the Ministry immediately and note the names of any muggles who may have seen or heard something. The witch r wizard is responsible for the costs of any memory modification required to maintain the secrecy of the wizarding world._

Dan put the document down, looked at his wife and quipped, "I expect it would be quite a surprise to reveal on a wizard's wedding night – come here dear, would you like to see my magic wand?"

Emma sat in silence for a few seconds. The love of her life had delivered yet another pathetic attempt at a joke to diffuse a highly stressful situation. She looked at Dan, made eye contact, fluttered her eyelashes, and in as sweet a voice as she could muster, replied, "Or not. Good try, dear. I love you, too."

The reality was, hiding this from their parents and friends wouldn't be a simple matter of omission. They would have to completely fabricate the details of their daughter's education to their friends.

… -- …

Hermione lay awake with the window open, looking at the moon and stars. Three weeks ago she was plotting how to ace all of her exams and stay one step ahead of Olivia and her clique of brats. She was worrying about getting admitted into Davison and somehow making it into Kings Collage someday like her parents had.

Now she was pondering what her special gift really was and where it would take her. Smiling at herself, she drifted of to a comfortable sleep.

… -- …

Saturday morning arrived. Poppy dressed and went down for breakfast. She was fortunate enough not to have any patients in the hospital wing. Fillius had volunteered to keep watch for her while she was out. The sky was grey, but the clouds didn't look threatening. She was obviously excited as she sat down for breakfast. Dumbledore noticed and commented, "You seem quite chipper today, Poppy."

She smiled and replied, "I'm accompanying the Grangers to Diagon Alley today. It was very enjoyable comparing healing techniques with them last Saturday."

Snape scowled and replied, "They know nothing of value. It's amazing that they're even able to read and write when they come to school." He liked to forget that he was a half-blood himself.

Dumbledore smiled indulgently and replied, "I'm certain that they do much better than you give them credit for, Severus." Looking at Poppy, he inquired, "When do you expect to be back?"

"Before nightfall."

Dumbledore nodded and replied, "Do enjoy your day, Poppy." He was delighted that the gentle healer wanted to get out from the castle grounds for a change.

At nine, Poppy knocked on the Granger's back door. She smiled to herself as she could hear the rush of feet racing to get to the door. This time Emma answered with Hermione inches behind her. She was invited in. Dan was just watching the world weather channel on their television. It showed live coverage of a major storm in Shanghai China. Poppy smiled to herself and thought, _'Nothing of value, indeed.'_

Emma asked, "Are you ready?

Dan nodded and asked, "Which car?"

She replied, "We'll take the BMW. The back seat of the Rover is cluttered with supplies for the office."

They walked out back and Poppy followed behind. She didn't know the different automobile models, but had ridden in a few when she was a teenager. After they got in, Dan asked, "Where are we going?"

Poppy replied, "Charing Cross Road, just west of Savoy Row and Kings College." Dan knew where Kings College was, and Charing Cross Road wasn't far from it. He nodded.

Poppy was delighted to ride in front with Dan while Emma and Hermione sat in the back. Dan helped her with the seat belts and they were on their way. They passed the Black Dog Pub on their way to the M23. Poppy watched in rapt amazement as Dan pressed a button on the dashboard opening up a little compartment. He opened up a small plastic case and took out a shiny silver disk and somehow the dashboard apparently swallowed the disk! A moment later, she heard loud music, similar to the Weird Sisters.

She could only utter the word, "What?"

"Who."

"What?"

"Who."

Emma felt another horrible attempt at her husband's humor coming on and explained, "This is called a compact disk, Poppy, or CD for short. It is sold with recorded music already on it. Dan, put this one in the compact disk player, please."

He pressed the eject button moments before the refrain from Pinball Wizard would have started. Silently pouting, he decided to try Steppenwolf on the way back.

The car was filled with classical cello music. Emma handed the CD case to Poppy and said, "This CD has Bach music recorded by the artist Yo-Yo Ma. I usually have it playing when I'm working on patients. Three of the four occupants were quite pleased with the change.

The better part of an hour later, Poppy announced, "Please park your lovely automobile anywhere that you are able to."

Dan found a spot and a minute later, they got out.

Poppy announced, "We'll pass into the alley by going through the Leaky Cauldron pub. This way, please."

Apprehension built on Dan, and a moment later he considered that he was entering her realm. Suddenly the pinball wizard pun that he'd planned on using didn't seem quite as funny.

They passed a Barclays, crossed the street, and walked by a small record shop. As they reached it, Poppy stopped and announced, "Here we are."

Hermione looked at the next storefront door and noticed an old pub sign hanging outside the doorway that read Leaky Cauldron. She pointed to the sign, though Emma didn't see it. Hermione grabbed her mum's arm and pointed again.

Emma noticed a sign that she wasn't certain had been there; no hadn't been visible, a moment before. She said, "I see it. Go show your dad." When Hermione let go of her arm, the sign appeared to fade for a moment, but remained visible to her.

Poppy opened the door into the darkened pub. Once they stepped in, Dan noticed that while not fancy, the Leaky Cauldron was really quite spacious – in fact, it was much larger than it looked from outside, and quite comfortable. There were candles along the wall and several stained glass windows. There were at least a dozen tables and several booths along the wall with old-style, private curtains. Along the side wall, there were several doors for the private parlors and a stairway that led to the sleeping rooms above.

Surprisingly, the pub didn't reek of stale beer; rather it had the pleasant aroma of freshly baked bread and stew cooking in a pot. Behind the bar was the proprietor of the pub who was giving instructions to his helper. It was obvious that it wasn't the first time that the toothless old publican had given the identical instructions. Dan noticed that several of the tables were occupied, mostly by clients who looked to be extras from a Sherlock Holmes film.

Hermione turned around at the sound of a crash.

… -- …

A/N – Optional deleted short scene here – see Yahoo group. (Warning – character abuse)

… -- …

Nob, the old bar-bac cursed himself as he had somehow knocked the tray of glasses off of the bar. It shouldn't have been a surprise; the tray was half on, half hanging over the edge of the bar, and he'd been taking the glasses nearest him off of the tray first to clean them.

Tom, the barkeep, rolled his eyes and muttered, "For the love of Merlin, man, is it too much to ask that you don't send all my cups n mugs arse over tea-kettle _every_ week? You've been doing this bloody job near on fifty years." He pulled his wand, pointed it at the broken mess and said, "Repairo."

The broken pieces jumped back to the appropriate spot and a second or two later, there were fifteen glasses and cups on the floor, looking as good as new.

Tom looked up as the glasses floated onto the bar in a neat row. He saw the pretty healer put her wand away. Tom smoothed his hair and smiled.

Poppy tolerated his uninvited advances and said, "Tom, I would like to introduce you to Miss Hermione Granger. She will be starting Hogwarts in the fall."

Tom wiped his hands on a clean bar rag and stuck out his hand in Hermione's direction.

Hermione held her hand out and in a small voice announced, "I'm pleased to meet you, sir."

Tom smiled at the young witch who was obviously muggleborn. She didn't yet know that as a near squib, he wasn't "Sir" to anyone, more than once. The purebloods of wealth like the Malfoys treated him worse than a one-legged house elf.

Poppy finished the introductions, "Tom, these are Miss Granger's parents, Dr. Dan and Dr. Emma Granger."

Tom greeted them, and Poppy continued, "We have some shopping to do today, but they'll be back next summer. You'll need to let them through when they come by. Okay?"

Tom nodded. He was the acting gatekeeper into the magical world and it helped to know that these three were welcome to return and would need assistance getting through when they did. He nodded again and replied, "Whenever you come back and need to go through, just find me and I'll let you in."

As she opened the back door to follow the others, Emma briefly considered inquiring about how they'd get back out.

As she was closing the door, she smiled as she heard Nob mention, "They seem like nice folk. The bird was a real looker too. Strange how she and her mister both had the same first name."

Tom rolled his eyes and shook his head. There was humor on the planet.

… -- …

Emma closed the door to the pub behind her. Outside, there was a grungy alleyway. To the side of the door were a half dozen stacked cases of empty bottles and three empty garbage cans. They didn't appear to have been cleaned or painted in the last century. On the other side of the alleyway was a brick wall that appeared to be hundreds of years old. In fact, it was over 500 years old, but that's another story.

Poppy called Hermione to stand by her. She pulled out her wand and pointed it at a particular brick. Hermione watched with the attentiveness of one destined to succeed.

Tap, tap, tap, tap. Poppy was very deliberate in pointing out the specific bricks and the sequence. Hermione nodded in understanding.

… -- …

Dan watched in utter amazement as the bricks in the very solid wall rearranged themselves like a rapidly moving jigsaw puzzle. Where there had been a solid wall ten seconds prior, now stood an eight feet high, four feet wide archway!

They crossed the archway, and like Alice, literally stepped into another world.

Feet away from Dan was a string quartet playing the same Bach prelude that Emma liked listening to in their office, minus the musicians! Emma looked at it in utter astonishment for a moment, first for the beautiful music itself, also at the museum quality instruments that were floating in the air, as if played by a group of invisible musicians.

Poppy smiled at Hermione and announced, "Welcome to Diagon Alley."

The Leaky Cauldron entrance marked the end of the alleyway that had some side streets and appeared to go on for at least a half mile with signs here and there, advertising everyday items and the extraordinary.

Poppy suggested, "We'll have a tour of the alleyway first and shop for your books on the way back. That way, you won't have to carry your heavier packages all morning. Does that sound okay?"

Dan nodded, knowing that he'd be the designated packhorse.

On their left they saw a cauldron shop. Looking in the open doorway they saw iron models ranging from a half-quart to giant models the size of garbage cans. There were brass models, cauldrons made of silver, pewter and one that was marked platinum. Emma thought that she knew the answer from chemistry classes at Kings and asked her question in the form of a statement. "I suppose the different metals are used to avoid reactions with various potion ingredients."

Poppy smiled, knowing that in the area of potions/medicines, their two worlds were rapidly merging. She replied, "You're correct. For most mundane potions, a two-quart brass model or a kitchen saucepan would work fine. The more complex potions that have dozens of ingredients tend to be much more sensitive. I take it that chemistry has advanced quite a bit since the war?"

Emma nodded and replied, "We should talk about it over lunch someday."

Poppy smiled at the younger woman and replied, "I'd like that."

On the other side of the street they saw an apothecary. To Emma's eye, it didn't look so very different from a similar shop that she and Dan would occasionally pass by in Chinatown. Very few things were prepackaged, and there were literally hundreds of bins and jars to select items from.

Two shops down from the apothecary was some type of sporting goods store marked Quality Quidditch supply. It had uniforms, protective gear, various balls, and …flying broomsticks!

Dan felt compelled to ask, "What's quidditch?"

Poppy considered her answer for a moment and replied, "It's a sport rather like polo, except played in the air by two seven man teams riding broomsticks. Objectively, it's a lot of fun for the players, and really quite exciting to watch, but like any sport, does have its risks."

Emma could envision a bunch of teenagers racing back and forth, falling out of the sky from time to time. She remarked, "I suppose that's where most of the mending and regrowing of bones comes from."

Poppy nodded and replied, "Precisely."

Emma added, "Hardly a week goes by when I don't get some schoolboy who knocked out a tooth or two in the name of sports."

The two women gave each other a knowing look, shook their heads in wonder and smiled.

Next to the sporting goods shop was a stationary store. It looked fairly ordinary to Emma except for the variety of inks and quill pens. Some were ordinary to Emma's eye. Some were marked self-inking, some spell correcting, others marked dictation and one was marked the quick quotes special. Some appeared to be made from goose feathers and some were marked eagle. There was even one made from a peacock feather!

Dan quipped, "That's probably one that some pompous arse would use to give autographs with."

Poppy choked back a laugh and replied, "You couldn't be more correct."

Dan asked, "Where are the everyday pens, tablets and reams of paper?"

Poppy, who frequently used fountain pens and an everyday spiro-bound notebook, knew what he was talking about. Just last year, she had been given a new pen, a Bic, and loved it. She replied, "Some use the everyday pen and paper. For schoolwork at the castle, the students use the inexpensive 50-foot rolls of parchment paper and goose quills. It's a nice tradition, I suppose."

Across the street, they saw a pet shop that had owls, cats, rats, snakes and something that Dan was unfamiliar with called kneazles. Emma had her eye on a white rabbit that turned into a top hat and back! Poppy noticed a baby snowy white owlet, and thought that one day he would be a handsome familiar for someone. Dan ushered them out, feeling that he was lucky to have dodged getting roped into a purchase or two.

Across the street from the stationary shop was a small store marked magical instruments. One side appeared to be stocked with musical instruments like those that they'd seen upon entering the alley. The other side contained watches, spinning balls, and for lack of a better term, silver gizmos. Some emitted tiny puffs of smoke; all of them looked quite expensive.

The bookstore was next, but they followed Poppy's advice and passed by it. Across the alley was an ice cream shop with outdoor tables lining the shop. Emma remarked, "We should stop there on the way back. Dan, do you want to go in the bank and cash a cheque?"

Poppy had been expecting this. She offered, "I have a number of galleons that I can exchange with you." She handed Dan a small bag and announced, "There are 200 galleons in the bag. Gringotts doesn't cash cheques, they exchange currency for galleons, galleons for currency, and offer investment and vault storage services. We can go in for a bit and look around if you like."

Dan nodded in agreement, and handed her a cheque for a thousand pounds. Visiting the bank looked liked fun, but something about it seemed more than a bit imposing at the same time.

As they walked up the white marble stairs, Emma noticed an engraved brass plaque. It read,

_Enter, stranger, but take heed_

_Of what awaits the sin of greed,_

_For those who take, but do not earn,_

_Must pay most dearly in their turn._

_So if you seek beneath our floors_

_A treasure that was never yours,_

_Thief, you have been warned, beware_

_Of finding more than treasure there._

They walked into the bank. On each side of the door stood… a goblin holding a long handled ax with the pole resting on the floor! Hermione recognized them from a book that she used to read with her dad.

She gave one of the goblins a nervous wave and in a small voice greeted him, "Hello, Sir."

The goblin looked at the girl, her parents and recognized the witch that they were with. He replied, "Good morning, Miss."

Hermione was about the same size as the goblin, though nowhere near as muscular. She asked, "Where could we get information about opening an account?"

The goblin gave half of a smile and pointed to a counter at the other end of the bank.

While Dan and Emma were with Hermione, an old man walked by and greeted Pomfrey. "Hello, my dear. You look lovely today."

Poppy smiled in recognition. "Good morning, Nicolas. I haven't seen you in ages."

The old man nodded and replied, "I suppose neither of us gets out as much as we should." He was next in line and the goblin gave him an obviously impatient look. He added, "Please give my greetings to young Albus and tell him that everything is taken care of. It was nice to see you again." He followed the goblin to the door marked 'vaults.'

Meanwhile the Grangers had gotten information on opening a student vault and currency exchanges. Dan announced that they would think about it and come back another day. They met up with Poppy who asked, "Is everyone ready?"

… -- …

Flourish and Blotts had been open for business for nearly 60 years. Alvin Blott, the "Junior partner" who, at age 98 had seen no more than a handful of fledgling witches walk into hi shop with quite the gleam of hunger for knowledge that the bushy haired little witch displayed. With the confidence of one used to books, she walked up to the help desk and said, "Excuse me sir. I have a list of books that I'm looking for and I'd also like a tour of your shop, if you wouldn't mind."

Seeing that their daughter was in her element, Dan and Emma sat down at the bench in the front of the shop and offered a seat to Poppy. The master healer gave a look at the determination of the little witch and asked, "Is this her first time in a bookshop?"

They all laughed.

Twenty minutes later, Hermione found her dad and announced, "I'm ready."

Dan stared at the nearly three foot high stack of books for a moment, noticed the smaller stack next to it, shook his head in a smile and asked his brilliant daughter, "Did you save some for next week?"

Emma looked through the titles that her daughter had selected and noticed, _An Appraisial of Magical Education in Europe, Hogwarts: a History, Muggles Who Notice, Rise and Fall of the Dark Arts, and A Healer's Helpmate_. Honestly, she thought that they all looked quite interesting, even the other stack, which were obviously school textbooks.

Dan was glad that they'd followed Poppy's advice and toured the alley before stopping at the bookshop. He commented, "Maybe it's time to be heading back."

Not wanting to part ways so quickly, Emma suggested, "There's a lovely ice cream shop on the way back. Maybe we should stop there."

Hermione selected "Gryffindor's delight" which looked like strawberry. The others made their selections and they sat at the little table and watched the other people stroll by.

Dan chose his words carefully before he spoke. Wiping the ice cream from his lip, he observed, "There doesn't seem to be a lot of evidence of technology along the alleyway. Is this typical?"

Poppy smiled at the truth that she was hearing. She replied, "Dan, there are several responses to your question. Starting with the easiest, I'd agree, pointing out that the release of magic around much of the electrical equipment in hour lovely home would likely damage the equipment. You may have noticed that the light bulbs in Hermione's room frequently need changing."

Dan nodded in agreement.

"Most of the appliances in your home are powered by electricity. Most homes from the more traditional wizarding families power their home primarily through the use of magic. I noticed a lovely refrigerator and freezer in your kitchen this morning. No doubt you use it to keep beverages cool and to store your food."

Dan and Emma nodded.

Poppy continued, "A traditional wizarding family would have a similar container, probably made of wood, similar to the ice box that your grandparents probably used. It would have cooling charms on the inside and the food would have preservation charms in place, so an apple or orange purchased at any market would stay fresh for several years. Their food would be cooked on a gas stove similar to yours except without a light in the oven. Your home probably has a radio that gets the BBC whereas most wizarding homes would have a wizarding radio that would receive the wizarding wireless network. We don't have anything approaching the remarkable television receiver that I saw in your home, so I suppose there are plusses and minuses either way."

Emma asked, "Where do most magical families live?"

Poppy replied, "All over, I suppose, though a disproportionate percentage probably live in the countryside or rural areas. Some live an isolation lifestyle to be certain. I'm certain that several of Hermione's future classmates live within 20 miles of your home."

Emma replied, "What you're saying is that there's no one answer."

Poppy smiled and replied, "Precisely, my dear. You and I share an enjoyment of classical music. Granted, there are variations in how it is delivered to us, but the similarities outweigh the differences. Perhaps Hermione or one of her classmates will lead the charge to integrate some of the newer technology into the magical world or the other way around."

Several hours later both the Grangers and the master healer went back to their homes, thoughtful of the discussions that they'd had. Somehow they each knew that they'd meet again.

… -- …

The old scribe walked into her office and noticed that as soon as she saw him, she hastily covered up the report that she'd been reading. He recognized it as Potters Bones by a new scribe, Mionefan.

The old witch gave Crow another of her stern looks. "I thought we'd come to agreement that there would be no more product placements." Given the blush that was still on her face, he didn't take her too seriously.

The old scribe was nonplussed. He hadn't been notified of any transfers into his Gringotts vault.

She ranted a bit, "_No more_ _product placements."_

Crow pulled his trusty Bic pen out of his picket and made a note on an old bit of parchment. He placed it on her desk before going back to his steel horse, hoping to find a place to feed it on the way to the Harley shop.

Realizing that he'd done it again, she read The Time Meddlers – Witowsmp on the slip of parchment that he'd left on top of his report

… -- …


	4. Keeping Secrets

… -- …

**Part 4 – Keeping Secrets**

Their friends Diane and Mike came over a few days before Christmas to visit and exchange gifts. Diane noticed that Hermione had maintained her higher level of confidence that she's begun displaying a few months ago. The psychologist attributed it to her Godchild's ability to see beyond an unpleasant primary school experience and look ahead to the future.

The golf season was over for Mike and Dan, but that didn't stop them from exchanging their annual gift with each other – a box of DT wound golf balls. Emma thought that they purposely gave each other the same gift every year just to annoy their wives. Diane considered it to be a practical guy thing gift that didn't require consideration of sizes or colors. In truth, the two long-time friends did it simply because they were great golf balls. After they'd opened the wrappers, Dan exchanged his balls marked ones and twos for Mike's balls marked threes and fours and they were both delighted with their gifts and considered themselves to be geniuses for the day.

"Did you decide on Davison?" asked Diane, knowing that it had been a stressful topic a few months back. They hadn't talked about it since, but Diane still had the feeling that Emma was covering something up or telling a half truth about Hermione's schooling plans.

"They sent an acceptance letter and we've put money down," replied Diane. "We're also quite interested in a smaller school in Scotland that has a physics program that Hermione has expressed a desire to go to."

Diane nodded waiting to see if Emma or Dan would add anything onto what they'd already said. They didn't, and the conversation drifted off into other areas. She would try and research schools in Scotland that specialized in physics and see what she found.

Mike commented, "So how's the shoulder going to be this next season? Are we still going to play the white tees or would you prefer to play from the reds?"

Dan thought about his answer for a moment. He couldn't really come out and say, _'A witch popped into my back garden while I was having a cold one, waved her magic wand over it a few times and now it feels as good as it did when I was twenty.' _Instead, he replied, "I've been doing a different set of exercises, and I hope to have another twenty five yards on my drives next spring without going home and feeling like crap for the next three days. Time will tell."

"That would be great," replied Mike. "Either the shorter tees or the longer ones would be fine with me if you change your mind. Besides, it's not the first 200 yards that matters, it's the last 20 feet. You work on the exercises, I'm going for a new pair of glasses."

They laughed at themselves and each had another beer.

… -- …

June came around. Hermione finished her primary school and left without so much as a goodbye from her classmates. The only awkward moment was when she filled out the form stating where her school records should be sent. She filled the space in with _undecided_, not knowing if Hogwarts could do a proper records transfer with "Inverness Academy" or not.

They had only been back to Diagon Alley one time on their own since Poppy took them for an introduction with Tom. Hermione had pestered her dad into purchasing a few more books for some background reading. A few only meant five in that case, so Dan went to Barclays and withdrew 7,000 pounds from their savings account. The teller had given him a surprised look when he asked for the funds in cash, but as Gringotts only dealt in British currency; he really didn't have a choice.

They walked into Gringotts and found the teller station to exchange currency. Dan handed the stack to the goblin and said, "I'd like to exchange this for galleons, please."

The goblin counted the currency with an unnatural speed and with his long, nimble fingers passed 27 stacks of 50 and one stack of 25 of the gold coins back to Dan like an experienced casino dealer. He replied, "Here are 1375 galleons. I deducted the 25 galleons exchange fee. Do you have any other business today?"

Dan asked, "Where is the window to pay the Hogwarts tuition?" The goblin pointed to a window a few counters over and said, "Cuthand will be able to help you at window 27."

"Okay. Thank you." Dan put the thousand galleons in the bag and put the others into his trouser pocket. He went to Cuthand and said, "I'd like to pay the Hogwarts tuition for Hermione Granger."

Cuthand took out a scroll, found Hermione's name listed at 1,060 and replied, "That will be 1,065 galleons." Dan gave him a suspicious look and Cuthand added, "There is a 5 galleon handling fee for paying the tuition at the bank. You can apparate to the castle if you want and save the handling fee."

Dan knew that he was being taken advantage of, but paid the gold anyway. He had no idea how much he'd have to pay for a magic wand, but didn't want to have to return to the bank for another year.

He kept 10 galleons for himself and handed the rest of the coins to Hermione, saying, "You should hang onto these. You'll need some for your shopping and hopefully have enough for some spending money at school."

Hermione very carefully put the coins into her bag and walked to the far end of the alleyway to the shop marked _Ollivanders._ Dan looked at the sign which read _wandmakers since 382BC_. The idea that a single business could be in existence for over 2300 years astounded him. Twenty minutes and twenty galleons later Hermione walked out of the shop as the owner of her very own magic wand. She'd been measured and tried two other wands before she was handed the one that the old craftsman had proclaimed a fit – 9 ¾ inches with a dragon heartstring core and a vinewood casing.

After a relatively quick stop at the bookstore, Dan (the packhorse) was carrying eleven more books, Hermione was carrying her boxed wand and 225 galleons and Emma was wearing a smirk looking at the two of them.

Three shops later, Hermione was loaded down with robes, Emma was carrying a set of pewter cauldrons and Hermione still had 75 galleons. Feeling a bit guilty about continually passing through the pub without stopping, they decided to buy lunch.

Nob took their order – three bowls of stew, two lagers and a butterbeer for Hermione.

At the table next to theirs, a squat woman with wide-set eyes and a pink bow in her hair was talking to a man with long blond hair wearing an expensive looking, black cape. Neither one looked especially friendly, and Emma caught occasional snatches of their conversation along the way – "bloody protection act proposal, blood traitor and stalled in committee."

As they gathered their belongings after paying, the blond haired man gave Dan an appraising look, found him lacking and sneered at him as he turned away. Something about them man screamed killer, in spite of his obviously expensive clothing, and Dan was more than happy to usher his little family out the door and back into the security of the Land Rover.

… -- …

After Hermione had gone to bed that night, Diane mentioned, "Did you see that man in the pub?"

Dan nodded and replied, "He reminded me of that cobra that we saw in the reptile house – a killer ready to strike."

Emma nodded and replied, "I'd love to get him into my chair for a double root cannel."

Dan agreed and added, "We'll need to work on a fair few people for all of this stuff – magic wands, witches robes, cauldrons, spellbooks and parchments."

Emma nodded and remarked, "The next payment for fall semester at Davison is due in three weeks. We'll get by."

Dan knew that Emma felt quite guilty about the cost of her fallback plan and added, "We're in fine shape. We'll get the schooling sorted out this fall and get by. The enamel hardening equipment is paid for this month and the only other equipment that we're paying on is the hydro scaler."

Emma knew that they were okay financially, but appreciated the words of encouragement. She replied, "Come upstairs and we'll talk about wands."

… -- …

In the mornings, Hermione studied geometry from eight until ten and Latin from eleven until one. Both of their tutors were impressed with their student; both at her obvious intelligence, but also at the dedication that she displayed in learning her subjects.

Emma usually was home by one and they had a late lunch together. The idea of sending her daughter off to study magic six hundred miles away at a boarding school where it was next to impossible for her to communicate with her daughter on a regular basis made her sick. She was having a harder and harder time sleeping and her concentration drifted at inopportune moments.

She found herself making excuses when Diane called wanting to get together for lunch and felt guiltier each time. Finally she drove to Diagon Alley, found an owl post office, and sent Poppy a letter asking to have lunch the next day.

… -- …

The master healer was delighted to receive the owl from Emma Granger inviting her to come to their dental office the next day then go have lunch. She arrived a few minutes early and walked into the office marked _Granger and Granger Dental Services – Your smile is our business._

Dan was fixing a patient's chipped front tooth. Poppy watched as he used his drill to get to a clean area, used a color card to match the whiteness, mixed the plastics to exactly match, applied the material to the broken tooth and shape it to match. It took longer than it would have taken her, but she had to admit that the end result was every bit as good.

Emma took Poppy to a coffee shop a few doors down from her office. After they had placed their orders Poppy remarked, "Thank you for the demonstration. I'd been in a dental office once before the way, but it was nothing like what you two did today. I admit that I was very impressed."

Emma replied, "Technology has gone a long way to raise the level of service that we are able to provide. She smiled and continued, "At the same time, it raises expectations."

Poppy nodded. Even with the aid of magic, she still felt that many of her patients expected miracles. She asked, "What's on your mind, Emma?"

Appreciating directness, Emma replied, "Did you and your husband Stan have many nonmagical friends?"

Poppy smiled at the remembrance of her husband and their too brief life together. She thought that she knew where Emma was going with her line of questions, but wanted to be sure. She replied, "Quite a few on the casual level, but with the statute of secrecy, fewer on the closer level."

She had a far-away look in her eye for a minute and continued, "When I received word that the Pandora had been bombed and sunk, Stan and 27 others had been killed… A lot of our friends were in the service at the time. I lost myself and developed what you call Social Agoraphobia… Headmaster Dippit had an opening at Hogwarts and I suppose that I hid in the castle for the better part of 50 years. I admit that you're the first nonmagical person that I've come to call as a friend in too many years."

Emma nodded as Poppy had told her story, and waited for her friend to finish.

Poppy realized that her friend hadn't called her to lunch to talk about Stan, but appreciated the opportunity nine-the-less. She asked, "How has your understanding of Hermione's gift affected you?"

Emma looked at the older woman and replied, "I've felt guilty every time Dan or I have been forced to lie to our friends. I'm recognizing all of the little nuisances that a nonmagical person has to face in order to do business with the magical world. To be honest, I don't mind for Dan and myself, but I hate watching Hermione lie to our friends."

Poppy listened carefully as Emma vented her frustrations. She'd have paid anything fifty years ago to have a friend like her to talk with. A few minutes later, Emma finished and met Poppy's eyes. In them, she saw the compassion and empathy that she needed. Emma smiled and said, "Thank you ever so much."

Both women left lunch that day and thought to themselves that it was comforting to have a friend to talk things over with.

… -- …

1 September

Emma couldn't sleep. There were a hundred voices in her head telling her that sending their daughter off to magic school was a bad idea. She could still go to Davison. She and Dan wouldn't have to lie to all of their friends every time that they saw them. She hated the idea of all of the bald-faced lies and half-truths that they'd make up each time they saw their friends Diane and Mike. It went against everything that she stood for.

Then there were the safety issues. She reasoned that the school would teach defense against the dark arts as a required five-year class unless there was a very good reason for it. Davison didn't have a required five-year self-defense curriculum – no normal school would. The idea that her daughter was entering some paramilitary academy bothered her greatly. What really frustrated her was Dan and Hermione's habit of minimizing her concerns.

She considered waking her husband, but Dan would probably say that it was her idea to give it a try for a semester and point out that they'd already paid 3200 pounds to Davison as a sort of insurance policy.

She was glad that Poppy had provided them with the name of a cover school, Inverness Academy, and a post office box number that they could give to friends and their parents. Telling them, "Find a barn owl and tie a string to its leg" sounded ridiculous. Her grandmother had a telephone, why couldn't they? _Technology indeed – good Lord._

There were mixed feelings around the breakfast table that morning – absolute excitement, steady resolve and dread.

As they were finishing eating, Dan asked, "Have you got everything that you need?"

Hermione made eye contact and replied, "Yes."

"Extra Mary Janes?"

"Yes Mum."

"Have enough money?"

"Plenty Dad. Thanks."

"Do you have all of your books?"

There was a momentary pause and Hermione replied, "Yes, except for the two that you have."

Dan winked at Hermione and added, "Magic wand?"

"Yes. Nothing up my sleeve. Presto!"

Emma's frown lessoned slightly.

"Rabbit for your hat?"

"Yes Dad, and extra carrots too, but I can't find my trick saw to cut the lady in half."

Finally, Emma's laugh matched her eyes. Just then the phone rang. Emma answered it. "Hi Ducks… Fine…We're taking her to the train station in ten minutes… We will… Hold on, I'll get her. Hermione, its Diane. She called to wish you good luck."

She put her hand over the mouthpiece and whispered, "We never told her."

"Hi Aunt Diane…Mum and Dan are just getting ready… Inverness Academy… They have a quantum physics prep program that I think I'll really like… Yes please… Did Mum give you the address? Okay… Love you too. I will. Bye."

Emma wiped a tear that was forming in her eye, knowing that if her daughter continued with a magical education, she would be lying to people for the rest of her life.

… -- …

Dan had given the final say to Emma. As they loaded the steamer trunk into the back of the Rover, Emma's mind screamed, 'turn around.' She sat in the back seat and stared at her little girl as the drove into central London. As they were crossing the bridge near King's Crossing, everything that she'd be missing flashed through Emma's mind – piano recitals, science fairs, school dances. The list seemed endless.

Dan found a spot by the station. Emma looked around. They didn't see a sign that read, "Welcome little witches." She took the ticket out of her purse and looked at again. _Hogwarts Express – Kings Cross to Hogsmeade. 11 AM - 1 September 1991._ She put the ticket back in her purse.

There was no platform 9 ¾. Slightly panicked, Emma asked, "Can you see a sign?"

Hermione looked around and admitted, "No."

They waited five minutes. Admittedly they were early, but there was no sign of any other witches or little wizards.

They waited another five minutes. Emma started to say, "Let's go home," when her words were drowned out by a POP immediately behind them. An elderly woman had her arm around a girl with strawberry blonde hair. She was Hermione's age. Pop, pop, POP, pop! Suddenly the area directly behind them was filled people. Emma watched as the little girl that they'd seen pushed her trolley right into the wall and disappeared! Moments later, dozens of other students followed behind her. In most cases, the children went by themselves after hugging their parents.

Dan squeezed Emma's hand. She handed Hermione her ticket, choked back her tears, and said, "Have a good term. We love you."

Hermione threw her arms around her mum and dad and promised, "I'll write you every week. I love you both." With her ticket in her hand and a steely look on her face, she pushed her cart through the wall and disappeared.

Dan and Emma stepped back a dozen steps, watched as a throng of people appeared and disappeared. After ten minutes the crowd had thinned out and they watched as a lonely little boy stood quietly in front of the wall as they had a half hour earlier.

Emma was about to go up to the little boy when a flock of red-heads pushed their way up to the wall.

"First time at Hogwarts, dear? No worries, this is the spot."

A half minute later they had all disappeared and Dan asked, "Are you ready to go?"

She nodded and turned around. With silent tears streaming down her face, they walked back to their car, holding hands.

… -- …

It was nearly midnight when Dan heard a tapping on their kitchen window. He went to the window and saw a brown owl carrying a message. Dan untied the message and a minute later the owl flew off, apparently believing that there was no return reply.

Dan walked back to the living room and announced, "It looks like Hermione sent us a note." Resisting the urge to open it, he handed it to Emma to read first.

_Dear Mum and Dad,_

_Amazing does not begin to describe my day. We hugged and I pushed the trolley through a solid brick wall! There was an entire platform behind the wall! The Hogwarts express was an old fashioned steam locomotive with eight coach cars. It looked a bit like Thomas the Tank from the show on the Beeb that featured that old singer that you like._

_I met some of the other girls and boys on the train ride. I sat by Harry Potter. He was mentioned in several of the books that I read over the year for having defeated he who-must-not-be-named when he was a baby. He seems nice, if not a bit quiet._

_We arrived at the Hogsmeade station and were collected together by Hagrid, the gamekeeper. We rode to the castle in little boats. It's huge! I'll describe it more later._

_Professor McGonagall took us to the house sorting ceremony. I was sorted into the Gryffindor house by a magical hat. Somehow the four founders of the school programmed some of their own intelligence into it that gave it the ability to examine a person's thought and make a placement decision._

_It's nearly bedtime, so bye for now._

_Love,_

_Hermione._

Emma handed the letter to Dan, who read it. She commented, "That was very nice of her to write a note so quickly."

Dan thought about owls for a moment, and replied, "It's got to be the better part of 600 miles to Inverness. How fast do owls fly? She probably didn't even get there before six."

Emma smiled and added, "I've no idea. The question is how fast do magical owls travel? She'd mentioned that Harry Potter boy when we talked over the summer. How on Earth could a little baby stop a dark wizard?" She wondered why that little boy that they'd seen was all alone.

Dan shrugged and replied, "I've no clue. I wonder if the various dormitories are all different."

Emma replied, "One of the books that she showed me indicated that the bravest kids were gathered into the Gryffindor house."

Dan considered her words and suggested, "Leaving everything that you have and going to a school that you've never heard of to go learn magic sounds like a pretty gutsy move to me. Let's hope she meets some nice kids there and gets on well."

… -- …

A week later, they received another letter from one of the brown school owls.

_Dear Mum and Dad,_

_Classes are amazing!!_

_Professor McGonagall turned herself into a cat and back in class! For our first exercise, we attempted to transfigure a matchstick into a sewing needle. They were about the same size, but made of wood and metal respectively. I was the first one to be able to do it perfectly – well, the only one to get anything on the first day. When I came back on Friday, it was a bit easier and I managed to make one with a proper point and eye. I'm glad that we bought my books last fall. Otherwise I'd be so far behind._

_In charms class, we worked on the charm that Madam Pomfrey showed us at our house – Lumos, which is a flashlight charm. Mine was the brightest._

_The library has some ten thousand volumes and manuscripts in it. Madam Pince, the Liberian gave me a short tour on Saturday morning when I went there. It's amazing – some of the manuscripts are nearly a thousand years old and they're still in perfect condition._

_I ran into Madam Pomfrey at breakfast this morning. I'm going to tour the hospital wing this afternoon._

_Love you both,_

_Hermione._

Dan bit his lip as he finished the letter. It wasn't what she wrote that niggled at him, rather what was missing. He looked at Emma and said, "I'd think I'd rather have heard that she and her dorm-mates had stayed up late laughing over some prank that they'd played on the first year boys and that she'd gotten along famously with the others in broomstick class."

Emma replied, "We both want her to do well on her tests. Hopefully no one will be too cruel, too quickly and she won't get a reputation as in insufferable know-it-all. I'll ask her about her dorm-mates in our next letter."

… -- …

Unfortunately, the next four or five Sunday letters were more of the same. It was obvious that she was studying hard and doing well in her classes, but deep down, they could see that their little girl was still lonely, even in a school full of little witches.

Emma was almost dreading the weekly letter when it arrived on the evening of the first Sunday in November.

_Dear Mum and Dad,_

_The Halloween decorations were fabulous. Hagrid had grown some giant pumpkins and brought them onto the great hall. They were nearly as big as the carriages from the fairy tale! Harry Potter and his friend Ron Weasley helped me with a troll that we were allowed to study. Ron made good use of the levitation spell Wingardium Leviosa that we'd learned in charms this week._

_Harry made the house quidditch team a few weeks ago. He is a remarkable flyer. The first game is next Saturday._

_Classes are going fine._

_Love from,_

_Hermione_

Emma tried to wipe the smirk off of her face as she handed her husband the letter. She was tempted to say, _Be careful what you wish for_, but held her tongue.

Dan's only comment was, "Aren't there any girls at that school?"

Emma drew her finger down her husband's chest and replied, "You can't have everything, dear. Come to bed. It's getting late. She'll be fine."

… -- …

A week later, Dan saw the owl tapping at the window as they were eating their breakfast. He opened the window and the owl fluttered in. He noticed that it was the same white owl that had delivered Hermione's letter the week before. Attached to her leg was a letter and a small bag. He gave the letter to Emma to read first.

_Dear Mum and Dad,_

_We won!!_

_Harry caught the snitch in the game against Slytherin House and earned 150 points. It was so fast. He had a spot of trouble handling his broom earlier in the game, but it all worked out in the end._

_I had an opportunity to use the blue bell fire charm that we'd read about over the summer._

_The weather is turning colder. Harry never seems to have enough to wear._

_Much love,_

_Hermione_

_PS the bag contains owl treats. Please give one to Harry's owl Hedwig to eat. She seems to love them._

Dan stroked the beautiful bird once and set one of the treats at her feet. She gave him a reproachful look that said, _'I wasn't going to bite you.'_

Emma suggested, "I think we don't need to worry about sending any more cheques to Davison."

Dan replied, "We should go to the club for dinner next week. We could play a short round in the afternoon before dinner." He sounded hopeful.

Emma smiled and nodded. There was only one golfer in the family. Silently, she prayed for a rainout.

… -- …

In the first of December, Emma received a note addressed to her from Hedwig. She opened it and read,

_Hi Mum,_

_I was wondering if you could pick up a couple of small Christmas gifts for Harry and Ron? Ten pounds each would be fine. Harry could really use a pair of warm mittins. Ron would appreciate a book on advanced chess strategy. I'll send Hedwig back next Saturday to pick them up. The train leaves at 9AM on 23 December. We should be back about 5._

_I miss you both._

_Love from,_

_Hermione_

Emma smiled. Hermione had never asked to buy Christmas gifts for any of her school chums before. She decided that Dan didn't need to see that note.

… -- …

At 5 PM the students began bursting forth from the seemingly solid wall. Emma watched Hermione appear and wave goodbye to a round-faced boy who was in the company of an older woman who was wearing the oddest hat. She also waved at two girls who appeared to be twins.

Dan hoisted her trunk onto a trolley and they began walking toward their car. Emma asked, "Were they friends from school?"

Hermione replied, "That was Neville Longbottom and his Grandmother. You probably saw Padma Patil and her twin sister Parvati too." Parvati is in my dormitory. Padma is a first year in Ravenclaw house."

Dan asked, "Are they nice?"

Hermione replied, "Neville struggles in potions class, but he's first in our year in herbology. He's pretty quiet in our common room." Parvati and our other dormmate Lavander are okay. They spend a lot of their time reading _Teen Witch Weekly_ and giggling behind the boys backs. Padma is in charms class with our house. She's a lot more serious about her studies than Parvati."

Emma asked, "So aside from gossiping in the loos, what were the most interesting things this semester?"

Hermione thought for a moment and replied, "We got to study a three headed dog. Astronomy has been pretty fun until the last two weeks when is got pretty cold. Charms and transfiguration were really terrific courses. I'm learning so much."

Dan added, "They sound great. We can't wait to get home and have you show us what you've learned."

Hermione frowned for a moment. Emma caught it and asked, "What's wrong? Did you forget something at school?"

Hermione shook her head as she looked out of the window. She replied, "Were not allowed to do magic outside of school until we're seventeen."

Emma thought about it for a minute. She reasoned that the son or daughter of a witch or wizard would have to be in a position to show their parents what they'd learned. She reasoned that it was a rule that probably applied only to the children of nonmagical parents. She wondered what degree of disadvantage it would place on a student like her daughter. She added, "Well, since you won't be pulling a rabbit out of a hat, you can at least tell us about it. Let's stop and get some take-away, shall we?"

… -- …

26 April

_Dear Mum and Dad,_

_We got to see a baby dragon hatch! Hagrid acquired an egg from a dragon trader that he'd met. The egg was about the size of a football and had to be kept near a fire to keep warm. It could snort sparks almost immediately. Hagrid named the dragon Norbert and told us that it was a Norwegian Ridgeback._

_It grew at an amazing rate and had a body the size of a medium size dog before Hagrid had it picked up by some dragon handlers who were taking it to Romania when it was a week old. He was quite sorry to see it go. (To each their own) I'm amazed that it hadn't burned his home down._

_Classes are fine. We're studying hard. I'm glad we began studying for exams a month ago. There are only six weeks left this term._

_My friend Harry is practicing for the quidditch match that's in a few weeks. He plays on the Gryffindor team on the seeker position._

_Love you both,_

_Hermione_

Silently smirking, Emma handed the letter to her best friend and waited for his reaction.

"Sounds like she's doing well," commented Dan.

Emma nodded. By her recollection, "Hermione hadn't referred to any other classmates as 'her friend' since the first grade.

On a completely different plane, Dan asked, "Do you suppose dragons are real?"

She smiled at him and replied, "Come upstairs and we'll find out."

… -- …

Dan and Emma arrived at the train station an hour early and found an empty trolley. With their more experienced eyes, they saw some of the magical parents and guardians arrive – the old woman with the unusual hat, a pair of redheads, the blond man who reminded Dan of a cobra and a stern looking older woman wearing a monocle.

A few feet away from Emma stood an overweight, unhappy looking man, with a walrus mustache.

Some of the parents were dressed oddly, almost as if they were in costume. Dan was all but certain that one of the dads was wearing an old housedress. With a careful eye, Emma saw the first boy emerge from the solid wall, carrying a trunk that looked unnaturally light. He was greeted by his mum and dad, who said, "Hello Cedric. Did you have a nice term?"

The handsome boy replied, "Just fine. Shall we go home then?" He held his father's arm and with a pop, they disappeared.

Dan was watching someone else, and missed Hermione and two boys emerge from the wall, dragging their trunks. Hermione kissed the dark haired boy on the cheek and said, "Bye, Harry. Have a nice summer. Write me please. Bye Ron."

The boy touched his finger to his cheek and a smile crept onto his face before he was roughly grabbed by the arm by the walrus man, who proclaimed, "Come on, boy. We haven't got all day." He dragged the poor boy away like a misbehaving dog on a leash.

Dan finally saw Hermione and went to pick up her trunk.

Emma hadn't missed a thing.

… -- …

On the way home, Emma considered all that she had personally seen, what she'd read, either in books or through Hermione's eyes in her letters. She concluded that the magical world held far more dangers than what Professor McGonagall, Healer or Student Hermione had led on. Yet she could see that the experience had changed her daughter, and most likely in a positive way. She obviously had found at least some degree of acceptance and clearly had made a friend or two.

As they pulled into the driveway, she asked, "So how did you like the magical world?"

Her little girl replied, "I like being a witch. It's a part of who I am and I believe it's where I belong."

Dan glanced in the rear view mirror, made eye contact with his wife and nodded. Deep down they knew that they'd made the best choice for the dentists' daughter.

End

… -- …

The old scribe watched the sun set of the fine fall day. The geese were flocking, and the trees were turning a golden color against the clear blue sky. He was pleased with the report and hoped that McGonagall would write him a short note letting him know what she thought of his report.

He hoped to get back home and read the reports from Madscribbler before the coming winter forced him to bid adieu to his trusty steel horse.

He thought about the other scenes that he remembered and considered his next project.

… -- …


End file.
